SUA1500I fan noise

[Anonymous user]

Hi,
i'm planning to buy an APC Smart-UPS SUA1500i and I would like to know how much noise the fan do when it is operating at low speed (I saw in the kb that newer SUA1500I have a 2 speed fan, wich is always operating at low speed, and it switches at high speed only in certain conditions). I will use the ups at home (under my desk) so noise level is crucial for me.
Is it like an htpc ? like a normal pc ? like an helicopter ?

Thank you all!

Marco

[BillP]

Here's what the [tech specs|http://www.apc.com/resource/include/techspec_index.cfm?base_sku=SUA1500i] for this unit lists:
Audible noise at 1 meter from surface of unit: 45.00 dBA

[Anonymous user]

Hi, thank you for the link. I have already read that document, but I assume 45 db (which is a lot!) is the worst case with the fan at top speed and the ups running on battery. I would like an evaluation of the noise in normal condition, with the fan running at low speed.
Does anybody use this UPS under the desk ?

Thank you

Marco

[Anonymous user]

hi,
thank you very much for your comments. I don't think to be so sensistive to noise, and my pc haven't any ultra silent fan...it produce a "normal" noise which does not bother me. If the SUA1500I noise is similar to a "normal" pc for me could be very good.
I leave the question open, with the hope to gather more comments from other users!
Thank you

Marco

[Anonymous user]

I can't tell you anything about the SUA1500I but I was pleasantly surprised about the noise of the SUA750I. Its specs are 5dB lower than the SUA1500I and I only tried it with light loads so far but here are my observations:
-there's a fan that spins up only when operating from the battery and even then it sounds (I didn't measure it) a good bit fainter than the specs and certainly not as loud as most PCs
-there's also a faint noise under normal conditions but I don't think I could hear it from under a desk except perhaps if there were no ambient noise whatsoever (it was easily masked by the sound from the building's heating in my case so that I had to put my ear next to the unit to hear it)
Again, I didn't try heavy loads yet so, for all I know, that model makes a racket when you really load it.

[BillP]

Well volume is subjective... Different people have different sensitivities to sound. Personally, the noise doesn't bother me, but then again I expect to hear some noise from electrical equipment and would rather have extra noise than an overheated system. I don't go out of my way to buy the quietest fans for my computer, if that helps put it in perspective...

According to Wikipedia, 40db is like a refrigerator or library (don't quite understand that to be honest 😛 ), and "the lower threshold for noise producing sleep disturbance is 45 dB(A) or lower."

[Anonymous user · Accepted solution]

Hi all,
i bought the SUA1500I so I'm posting my impression about the noise, with the aim to leave some useful information here in the forum.
When running at low speed the fan produce a very very low amount of noise. I use the UPS near my pc (a normal pc, not an htpc or similar) and the noise of the pc hides completely the noise of the ups. When running at full speed the UPS is quite loud and you can clearly hear it (see kb 6672 to learn when the fan will operate at high speed).

In a completely silenced room you can easily ear the fan also a low speed, so i think the SUA1550I can't be positioned inside a bedroom, but it's a good choice if you can put it in a working room under the desk where you use your pc

Marco

Message was edited by: marcom76